There are various needs in the fields of law enforcement or investigative services, site preservation, medical, agricultural and other applications in which it is often necessary to collect samples or specimens for testing, verification, contagious disease containment, legal applications, and any other endeavor that may require the collection, preservation and transmission of a sample or specimen, in a suitable assembly, from one location to another.
With respect to the field of law enforcement or investigative services, an officer, detective or other investigator, such as a private investigator, forensic scientist and the like may be required to collect specimens, samples, materials, and other evidence at the scene of an event, such as a crime, in order to preserve and protect any critical or important evidence that may be used in solving the crime or explaining the event that has occurred and lead to the investigator being present. Such samples are typically used for DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) analysis to connect a possible defendant to the crime or event. Maintaining the integrity of such samples is absolutely critical in attempting to obtain conviction of the possible defendant.
Historic preservation and archeological expeditions also may require the collection and safe-keeping of samples of material that are collected from the site, structure or location of the collection effort. For example, in the restoration of a historic building, many layers of paint may have accumulated over the years and stripping away and collecting a sample from each layer may be important in analyzing and verifying the age of the structure. In addition, such paint samples may be necessary in matching the particular or original color the structure was painted so that the restoration when completed is authentic.
Archeological expeditions require painstaking removal of debris and dirt that has amassed over a site of interest over a period of time ranging from several decades to centuries to millennia. Each layer contains invaluable information about the history of the site and may require carbon dating, chemical evaluation and other analysis to be conducted during each period of time being studied to better understand the age and speed of deterioration of the site so that additional steps may be undertaken to preserve the site. In addition, human and animal remains, when discovered also need to be collected and transmitted in a manner so that the location can be verified and the integrity of the sample maintained so that there is no confusion about the age of the site or the inhabitants that may have occupied the site at one time.
The medical field regularly collects samples and specimens of biological material such as tissue, blood, saliva, seamen and other bodily fluids and matching the integrity of the sample to the patient or donor in order to ensure the adequate and proper treatment of the patient submitting the samples or from whom the samples were procured from. In addition, sample collection and preservation is also very important in areas where contagious diseases have broken out so that proper analysis can be conducted and treatment arranged for the relevant portion of the population.
The legal profession also requires a means by which to collect and preserve information, samples, specimens and other evidence for client's files or in investigating certain events. In addition, sample collection from crime scenes for criminal defendants is also important. Other uses may include collections of samples and specimen for the purposes of evaluating products, processes and materials from competitors and the like.
Agriculture scientists and veterinarians also periodically require the collection of samples and specimens for research and study. Exemplary uses may include blood samples for determination of pedigree of a particular line of animals. Testing for disease in animals such as “mad cow” disease also requires the period testing of biological samples in an effort to determine whether a herd has been infected with a disease. Collecting plant tissue can also aid in research, breeding of crops and testing for disease or resistance to certain herbicides.
Each of the foregoing applications and many others not enumerated above, such as use in horticulture and collecting herbarium samples, etc. require the ability to collect, retain, transmit and verify the integrity and chain of custody during each phase of the handling of the sample, specimen, etc.
Presently, there are a number of products available in the marketplace for certain uses. These may range from single bags with resealable, mechanical closures (hook and loop, rib and channel, etc.) with a place for indicia to be printed on the bag to more elaborate sample collection bags that may have a reusable opening to enable access to the sample and then a single re-closing of the container until the sample finally reaches its destination. Still other products include a sample collection bag that may have a record receiving ply connected to the bag so that a record can accompany the bag and a receipt attached at the place of origin to prove continuing custody of the sample or specimen unit.
Another product offering includes a bag with plural seals to open and subsequently close and secure the sample and then a plurality of labels that enable placement of a label on a specimen collector as well as on a record receipt for the purposes of record retention by the investigator or other person enclosing the sample or specimen.
While the products are generally effective for the uses that these constructions have been put to, they still however suffer from various drawbacks. Often these sample collection units are constructed of a single ply or may be made from a transparent material so that the sample may be damaged by ultraviolet degradation, or may simply be removed by someone that does not want the sample to reach its final destination.
In order to attempt to defeat this situation, such sample bags have been placed in separate boxes, bags and the like however, such a process requires that the sample collector locate such an auxiliary structure. In addition, such auxiliary structures, if the source is unknown or if care of the structure has not been continuously monitored, the structure can contaminate the sample or material contained within the bag. Alternatively, if the sample collected is for DNA analysis, the outer structure may contaminate the sample bag depending on the sealing nature of the outer structure or any pathogens that may be present at the location the auxiliary structure was manufactured, located or handled.
In addition, these prior art constructions require the sample or specimen to often be placed into and removed from the collection bag several times for testing and analysis which can lead to possible contamination of the sample and potentially lead to distorting the results of the analysis performed on the sample or specimen.
What is needed therefor is a sample, specimen, material collection device that lends some universality to the collection needs of various industries and applications for which specimen collection is required and which provides a composite construction that overcomes the foregoing difficulties while meeting the needs and applications for such a diverse arrangement of needs and requirements.